Charity work
by bonvieuxtemps
Summary: Takes on from episode s02e18 Jones. Could the New Orleans detective get in the way of the two women's growing relationship? Warning: Femslash . Emily/JJ
1. Chapter 1

Charity Work

Spoiler: S02E18 Jones

Pairing: Emily/JJ, slight JJ/Will

Disclaimer: I don't own the rights to Criminal Minds or any of its contents.

Author's note: All mistakes are mine, as even though i'm back from vacation, my beta is still enjoying the wonders of it.

"…Houston, New Orleans…" The brunette contemplated as she waited for the blonde to arrange the latest case's files. They were the only ones left in the conference room as the rest of the team got ready to get the plane. "And I thought I traveled a lot when I was a kid".

"Sounding a bit regretful there, Agent Prentiss" The blond pointed out. She leaned over the table, watching as her friend, not surprisingly, spaced out. She couldn't precisely point out when it happened, but at some point they developed the habit of waiting for each other after briefings. Like the Friday's night out and the Monday's coffee, it came like a natural progression to their developing friendship.

"Oh no no…not at all" Emily said hastily when she finally registered what the blond had said. Once again her thoughts had drifted to not-so-happy places. Ever since she joined the profiling team it had been harder than unusual not to be affect by each case. There was no amount of studying that could have prepared her. Yet, she hadn't lied. She didn't regret it. She didn't regret it at all. No matter what dark images had come to haunt her mind, the mere thought of the blond press liaison that stood across the table could help put them away.

"This…It's my dream job" Emily said, even if it was far from being the only reason for her lack of regret. JJ smiled in response, unsurprised by the answer, picking up the files, ready to leave the room. Ever so slowly that smile acquired a suggestive quality before she asked "So it's just the job?"

Just like the blond expected Emily was startled by her obvious flirt. She winked and left the room with a permanent smile on her face, leaving behind a speechless dark-haired agent. To say she didn't know why she liked to tease Prentiss would be flat out lie. Even though she loved the brunette's sexy voice, there was nothing more endearing than the brunette's face when rendered speechless.

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The agents kept themselves busy as the plane made its way to New Orleans. Reid and Morgan talked whilst the others analyzed the cases' files. In a brief moment in which the brunette female agent took a break she couldn't help but listen to a part of the men's conversation.

"He probably just couldn't take the heat" Emily joked, smiling at the genius.

"It's not really for us to judge, is it?" Reid snapped, catching by surprise the other two agents.

"Right…My bad" The brunette female mumbled apologetically.

Morgan wanted to say something. Reid's rudeness was uncalled for. Prentiss was still new, but she certainly deserved better than that. JJ's voice brought them all to business, and Emily's usual mask of indifference back. However, there was a brief look on her face that told him that Reid's attitude had stung.

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The first times it happened she'd tell the blond woman that there was no need to wait for her, even if she always did it when it was the other way around. Soon she gave up, having a taste of just how stubborn the blond woman could be. Once again, they were left behind, this time on the plane, as Emily took her time putting the rest of her files in the bag.

"Sorry for my bluntness but…What's the problem with your ex…whatever?" The brunette asked, flipping her hand.

JJ stared at her, looking a bit confused. When she finally understood who the brunette was talking about, she couldn't stop an amused smile from showing up on her face. "My… What?"

"Yeah…you know…Reid. He's been acting all…" Emily stammered a bit, waiting until she was certain the blush on her face was gone so she could turn to her colleague.

"Reid is not my ex…whatever" The blond chuckled "Redskins game. He had tickets." She continued like it was the most natural thing. "I would hardly call it a date"

"Aww…No smooches? I'm disappointed" Emily teased, attempting to hide her relief. When Morgan mentioned that the media liaison and the genius boy had once gone out on a date, she feeling a bit jealous was almost inevitable. The jealousy went away as she became sure that there was nothing between them anymore. Then all that was left was a bit of envy. She finally understood why nothing came out of that, Reid couldn't have chosen a worst place for a date with the blond. She had been to a Redskins' game with Miss Jareau and, to make it short, hadn't she run after the blond she'd have had to call a cab.

"Nope. He's not my type" JJ replied, knowing fully-well where that was going.

"And what would that be?" Emily asked, before smacking herself internally, seeing the growing smirk on her friend's face "I just right walk into those, don't I?"

JJ's smile got even larger, but before she could reply that her phone rang. She looked at the other woman apologetically before answering her phone, already on agent mode. "Jareau. Me? Yes, sir. No problems, I'll let her know" Emily looked at her expectantly as she closed the phone "I'm hitting the crime scene. Hotch asked you to meet with…" The blond suddenly looked worried "…Reid at the morgue. Is it gonna be ok?"

"Yeah, yeah. Don't worry. I can handle it." The brunette reassured her with a smile before closing the bag.

"I'm sure you can, Em. Come on, I'll drop you by the morgue." The blond took the keys out of her pocket and showed the other female.

"You're driving? I think I'll risk calling a cab" Emily teased, getting herself a slap on the arm from the blond.

"We were late. You're alive. Get over it" JJ grinned as they left the airplane.

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The ride to the morgue wasn't long, or at least it didn't feel like it for the two women. Caught up on their usual banter since they left the airplane, the time went by in haste. To Emily it was way too soon when the blonde turned off the car and turned to look at her.

"Hey. We're gonna talk about it later, ok?" Emily was caught a bit of guard by the caring in JJ's tone but before she could start saying there was no need JJ continued "That was rhetorical. We are going to talk about it. Now out"

"Bossy" The brunette mumbled jokingly. Laughing as she was shooed out of the car.

"You have no idea" The blond shouted before taking off. Leaving a stunned brunette, rubbing the back of her head on the sidewalk, thinking "Yeah, I do walk right into those"

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It wasn't long past midnight when Morgan walked out of the police station, to find two quiet agents leaning on the car he was supposed to drive. It was almost comic the way Reid looked everywhere except at Prentiss, who looked as calm as ever, but he could feel she wasn't in her best mood as well.

"Hey kids" Morgan greeted, receiving glares from both agents. He opened the car and tried not to laugh at the barely noticeable power battle going on the other side for the front seat. Surprisingly, this time, the brunette female didn't back down; and bearing a terrifying glare, enough to scare even Morgan, she took her place in the front seat. Reid sat in the back, his annoyance emanating.

"This is gonna be fun" Derek said as he took off. Not bearing the absolute silence from the passengers he turned on the radio. The radio was the only the only sound in the car the trip to the hotel. He had barely stopped in front of the building when the two jumped off the car. He accompanied Reid to the back of the car, but Prentiss stood in front of the building, one hand on her forehead.

"Hey Emily" Morgan shouted to get her attention "What's wrong?"

"My bag. I left it in JJ's car." She replied before opening her phone.

"She said she was gonna go over some things with Hotch and the lead detective. She shouldn't take long"

"You're right…" She closed her phone and waited for the guys to get their bags to go inside. Morgan got the keys for his and Reid's room and the dark-haired woman got the one for the room she'd share with JJ. Deciding there was no point going to the room now she also asked the directions to the restaurant.

The guys didn't take long to find their room and get acquainted. So many times going from one hotel to another, they had already gotten used to the impersonal space. The dark agent picked up a folder from inside his bag and threw the container besides one of the beds. He stood at the doorway, watching as the genius organized his belongings methodically. He wanted to say something, try to reach out once more, but he knew that wasn't the time. He tried before, now he'd wait for the young man to come to him.

"I'm gonna find Prentiss. Do you wanna come?"

"No, not at all. I'd rather stay and get some rest." Just like the question was more for politeness reasons, the reply was automatic. Even if he was tired, Morgan was certain that wasn't the only reason for him not to go. It was noticeable the way he'd been avoiding Emily as much as he could without being unprofessional. He nodded in acknowledgement and left the room. It didn't take him long to find her. She looked tired as she drank from her dark colored beverage and continued to write on a napkin on the hotel's restaurant table.

"Do you ever stop?"

"I sleep once every couple of years" she joked and pointed at the chair across the table, in which he unceremoniously sat. "So why aren't you in your room? No offense, but you look like you could use a bed"

"I can say the same about you…no offense, of course." She chuckled lightly "What are you working on?"

"It's just… this thing about Jack, the ripper. Those letters… I don't know. There's something bugging me. And without my case…" Prentiss smiled brightly as her friend put the cases' files on top of the table. "I hate having to inflate your ego, but I love you!" Morgan laughed at the way the brunette snitched the files like it were the last candy bars in the store.

It was over an hour later that the team's press liaison silently walked into the brightly lit room. She found the two agents talking animatedly, what looked like the case's files scattered amidst a couple of beer bottles. From the loud laughter she'd guess it's been some time since they last talked about the case. And Morgan's smile seemed to grow when he spotted the blond woman walking in. He whispered something to the brunette and laughed loudly as she spilt her drink. Emily took a few deep breaths before turning.

"He drank it all…really…" JJ laughed at the look on the brunette's face and the way she seemed to drag each word. She probably wasn't lying…much. She wasn't drunk but she was definitely sleepy, and a sleepy Emily could be much worse than a drunken Emily.

"I'm sure he did, honey" If the two women didn't notice the endearment word, Morgan surely did, but chose not bring it up…for the meantime. Ever since he started to hang out more with the girls, especially with Prentiss, he noticed. Though, he could guess it was obvious even to those who didn't spend much time with the two females. It was in their eyes. It gave them away every time, more than any endearment word.

"You called." Jj stated.

"I did? Oh yeah I did"

"Missing me already?"

"More like missing my bags" The brunette joked back, laughing loudly at Morgan's over the top "Ouch" and JJ's fake hurt expression.

"But you could say I missed you too" JJ knew the dark-haired agent was joking, but something in her eyes told her it was not all joke. They smiled brightly at each other, almost forgetting Morgan's presence.

"Don't know about you guys, but I'm pretty beat. I'm heading to bed." He took one last drink of his beer, put all files back in the folder and got up "See ya in the morning, girls"

"Goodnight, Morgan" The girls said. Or at least Emily tried but was stopped by the unstoppable urge to yawn. "And that's where you should be heading"

"His bed?" She received a mocking glare from the blond.

"No, ou…your bed. Come on"

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They walked into the room in a comfortable silence. It was late and they wanted was a good shower and a comfy bed. Emily noticed her bag, already in place beside the further bed, like she left every time they were in a hotel room; and lied down on the blonde's bed, knowing that was the only way to make sure she would be woken up, in case she fell asleep.

"Thanks" JJ smiled in response and walked into the bathroom. She didn't take long, but surely enough the brunette was snoring, asleep on her bed. Without worrying about making noise, knowing the brunette was far from being a light sleeper, she finished getting ready to bed. It took her many failed attempts to find out how to wake up the older agent without making use of a bucket of water or freaking her out badly – saying her mother was looking for her had proven to be a really bad idea… effective, but not recommended. Then one day, by accident, she found a way. Since then, waking up the brunette agent became an almost effortless ordeal.

Making sure to leave the bathroom door open and the lights on, the blond put a bit of perfume on her hand and moved to the brunette's side. She slowly pulled the dark-hair out of the other woman's face and behind her ear. Fighting off the urge to just stay there beside the bed watching the brunette, she started to caress her nose, much like she'd do to a cat. It didn't take long for the brunette to stir. When she saw the smile creeping up on her face she stopped her movements. JJ chuckled when the brunette pushed her head forward, looking for contact.

"Not fair…"Emily mumbled.

"We can talk about how unfair it is when you're not making my bed stink" Emily groaned as she was pulled up by the blonde. JJ lied down on the bed and watched the other woman slowly walk to the bathroom, mumbling incoherent things. It still amazed her how adorable Emily was when sleepy.

Other than the loud "Dammit" exclaimed by the brunette when hit by the freezing cold water, the shower went smoothly. It gave JJ time enough to review some of the case files and write down some observations; all those things just an excuse so she can wait for the other woman to come out of the bathroom. Yes, denial came. And gone. Being attracted to anyone, especially a colleague, wasn't near her agenda. Yet, there came Emily Prentiss and captured her with each passing day. There was no love at first sight, no schoolgirl crush. Au contraire, nothing on the first moment she set eyes on the other agent indicated the growth of the feelings invading her body when the brunette walked out of the bathroom; towel wrapped around her wet body, messy dark hair clutching to her sleepy face.

No words were said as Emily slowly got dressed, under JJ's hardly sneaky eyes. If Emily noticed, she never said a thing or acted differently. In those post-shower sleepy moments of her, there was only one thing she'd say; and it's the one thing the blond waited all day to hear. In was in those moments, just as she lied down in bed and closed her eyes she she'd mumble "Bonne nuit, Jennifer"

"Yeap, still sexy" The blond muttered to herself, before turning off the lights and going back to bed.


	2. Chapter 2

Charity Work (2/?)

Spoiler: S02E18 Jones

Pairing: Emily/JJ, slight JJ/Will

Disclaimer: I don't own the rights to Criminal Minds or any of its contents.

Author's note: I found my beta!! Somehow she put up with me and managed to do a great job, so thanks B. Thank you everyone who reviewed, I really hope you enjoy this one too. Also want to dedicate it to Tams and Soad. You guys weren't kidding when you said there would be bugging. =D

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She turned over in bed and shielded her face with the pillow, making a promise to kill whoever turned the lights on. She didn't care to check what time it was, all she knew was that it felt like way too early for her to be awake. All she wanted was to go back to whatever dream she was just having. That was until she felt it. The scent hit her nostrils way before she heard the sound of the door being carefully opened. Emily was so worried about not waking her up that JJ decided to pretend she was still asleep.

The coffee's scent was moving closer, but before she could have an idea of exactly how close, she felt the cushion shift. Emily found a bit of space and sat next to the lying blond, leaning on the headboard.

"I know you're awake, JJ" Emily's voice carried a hint of laughter.

"Then you … coffee" She chuckled throatily at the blonde's muffled reply.

"Then…what?"

JJ lifted the pillow just enough so that she could speak "Then you wouldn't mind passing my coffee"

"You mean, my coffee?"

"Yeah, like you'd ever have milk in your morning coffee." JJ took her time sitting up by the older woman, morning light clearly still bothering her.

"And some people still say I'm addicted to coffee" Emily said as she had the coffee cup snatched out of her hand.

"Oh my appreciation for coffee has nothing to do with your known addiction"

Emily overtly dramatically faked being stabbed to the heart, and burst into laughter after earning a light slap from the blond; who, ceremoniously, drank some more of the discussed beverage. When the laughter started to die out and JJ turned a bit, to be able to more easily look her in the eyes, she knew the tone of the conversation would change.

"What happened?" The blond asked "And don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about"

"It's nothing, really"

"Emily…" JJ started, but stopped short as the brunette sighed. Emily knew very well what that tone meant. That was going to be harder than…Nah, she knew from the moment the blond put into words that they were going to talk about it that that was a conversation she wouldn't be able to escape from.

"Reid…Well he has kinda, sorta been a bit…rude. Actually, maybe that's a bit too much. Overtly impolite maybe…"

"He's been a jerk" The blond stated, stopping another one of the brunette's rambling.

"Well…" Emily took a deep breath "Yeah" She looked apologetically "I'm sorry"

"Why are you apologizing? Did you do something to him?" The blond was sure of what the answer would be.

"No! I'm…I'm pretty sure I didn't do anything to him."

"Then don't apologize. It's not your fault. When did it start?"

The brunette hesitated "A couple weeks ago"

"Weeks? Why did you take so long to…" JJ took a quiet calming breath before continuing "You could have said something sooner"

"You've been working as a team for years, JJ. I'm just the new girl…"

"You know better than to…Weeks? How many weeks?"

"JJ…" Emily looked apologetically. She knew when the blonde found out she would blame herself. She still had a hard time when it came to anything relating to the Henkel case, especially if involved Reid.

"I'm going to talk to him" JJ used the same voice she used when telling Emily they would have that very conversation.

"Don't" Emily pleaded.

"This is not your burden to carry"

"This is nobody's burden to carry" Emily took a deep breath and looked the blond in the eyes "JJ, It's not your fault" She repeated the other woman's words, vehemently.

"I'll…I'll talk to him. At least try to understand. There must be…" The blond stared out the room's window "Gosh, I never thought Reid could…"

"Anyone can" The brunette said with certainty, looking a bit saddened. The blond continued to stare at the open window, the sunlight not bothering anymore. She thought over the things she had been told, quietly, under Emily's concerned look. She watched as the blonde's thoughts crossed her mind, and showed on her face. She knew the blond had come to a decision about the situation when her face regained the usual calmness she usually portrayed.

"Is it really as late as it seems?" The blond finally said.

"Nope, we still have a couple of hours before having to…" She stopped mid-sentence when the familiar sound of a mobile phone's ringtone filled the hotel room.

"Please tell me that is not my phone" The blond glared at the brunette, who was already laughing at the irony, "You just had to go and jinx it". She handed – more like threw at – Emily the coffee mug and kneeled down, for better access to her bag.

"Being a Press liaison and everything, shouldn't you like, keep your mobile nearby at all times?"

"Not funny, Prentiss!" JJ replied, having finally reached her phone.

"Oh it's Prentiss now?"

"As far as I know, that's still your name, honey" Emily laughed harder at the horrified look in JJ's face when she realized she had already answered the phone. "Jennifer Jareau. Good morning to you too, Detective LaMontagne" She coughed and tried to keep her professional voice, while trying to get Emily to stop imitating a puppy dog. The blonde's next words abruptly cut the jokes, "Another body? Give me the address and we'll meet you there" The brunette handed her the closest piece of paper and pen she found and waited, as the blond scribbled down the information and finished the phone call.

"They found another man dead. Pretty sure it's the same killer. I'm gonna call Hotch and…"

"I can call Hotch, go take a shower" offered the brunette.

The blond thought it through before walking to the bathroom, "I won't be long"

"I'd take some extra time if I were you. You are kind of stinking" Emily joked, loud enough for the blond to hear through the bathroom door and come back out.

"I'm so not you and, by the way… " She snatched the cup from the laughing brunette's hand and ran back the bathroom, "that's my coffee"

It didn't take her long to get their boss on the phone, "Hey Hotch. LaMontagne just called, said there's…He already called you? Oh, no nothing. I'll meet them downstairs in a few then. She's taking a shower but I'll let her know"

She walked around the room in silence, gathering all that was necessary for another day on the job, hardly any attention on it. She couldn't help but find it strange the detective's actions. It's far from unusual for a detective to call the team's press liaison, but seems a bit unnecessary since he had already called the team's boss.

"Is something wrong?" JJ asked softly, still very wet, wearing only a towel. Emily, as always one to get lost in her own thoughts, took some seconds to realize JJ was already out of the bathroom and had spoken to her.

"The guys are waiting for me downstairs"

"Already?"

"Yeah…LaMontagne called Hotch. Before calling you."

"I am the press liaison, you know" Emily shot her a look that made it clear that was not the time to be condescending. She could almost see the wheels turning in the brunette's head, trying to connect any loose dot. "The guy is crazy about solving this case; I'm surprised he didn't call the entire team. "Emily let out a short chuckle and smiled brightly, but the blond was sure of two things, the smile was a bit forced and the brunette wasn't at all convinced. If the blond herself wasn't unaware of the detective's gooey eyes her way the previous day, she knew the brunette had definitely seen.

"Lucky you, you still got some time left. Hotch asked you to meet him at the police precinct when you're ready, and the rest of us will meet you there after we check the scene. Hopefully we get to build a concise profile today; god knows this city doesn't need any more tragedy"

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Emily moved through the pull the bullpen, mobile phone glued to her ears, looking for the blonde media liaison.

"Garcia found a similar case in Texas. Gideon asked us to go check it. You, me and Reid. I don't know; that's what I'm trying to straight out." Passing by one of the last offices in the corridor she found the blond agent, who was busy talking on the phone "Just found JJ. I'll call in a sec" Emily hung up the phone and leaned on to the doorway, knocking on the door in order to get the blonde's attention. JJ made a sign for her to wait and continued to listen to whoever she was talking to through the telephone.

She watched, still surprised her how they, so easily, became friends, being so different. Their differences went way beyond their contrasting looks. It went from their brought up to the way they felt about their job, with most of what was in between.

It took a while for Emily to realize there was something different about the blond, in a special kind of way. One day, on a Thursday night, she stayed until late in the bullpen, draped over a pile of files that weren't due the next week. It was less about wanting to get it done than being too lazy to go home. If anyone found her asleep in her desk in the morning she could blame the "mysterious" theft of her – carefully hidden ­– coffee powder by an unknown technical analyst. However, in a rare universal conspiracy in her favor, she was lucky. Not unknown to late hours in the federal building, the BAU's press liaison had just decided that was the last case for the day when she saw, through her office's window, the dark-haired female; looking like she might start to drool at any minute. It didn't take long for her to be by the brunette's side, suitcase and car keys in hand, taking her attention away from the tedious paperwork. Somehow, the blonde convinced her not only to continue the paperwork in the morning, but also to get her lazy ass out of the chair she had been glued to for the previous five hours, at least.

She didn't remember how they got to JJ's house, or how she ended up on her living room's sofa. The first conscious moment she could remember after being approached by the blond in the bullpen was of a hazy vision of her, clad in pajamas eating popcorn, eyes focused on the TV. Her attempt to say something was shooed by the blond, because it was her favorite part of the film and no one could interrupt. Emily chuckled at the blonde's manners, but didn't point out the fact that she was the one who spoke through the whole scene; in fact, she spoke through the whole film. The brunette was already wide-awake when Richard Gere went up the fire stairs to the waiting arms of a young Julia Roberts, all complete with an extra narration by a blond FBI agent. The blond smiled as if it was the first time she watched it, and Emily smiled with her, for a whole different reason. She wasn't particular fond of romantic Hollywoodian films, it bothered the hell out of her when someone spoke throughout a film; and there she was, watching a commented version of Pretty Woman for the third time that month, with a smile on her face. Yeah, there was something different about the other woman; she could just feel it…

"Emily!" JJ tried for the hundredth time. She started softly but the lack of response from the brunette had her close to shouting to get the other woman's attention. Spacing out really was her thing.

"What?" The brunette asked, coming back from her musings.

"I just asked what you think" JJ looked at Emily like she had grown a second head.

Emily didn't know what to do. The blond looked like she was starting to get annoyed by her lack of attention and she had no idea what the question was about. She strained her mind in hope she had somehow heard a word of the blond had said before, but nothing came. She felt embarrassed before the words even left her mouth.

"I agree with you"

"That's good to know" The blond shook her head and smiled. "You were looking for me?"

"Right, Garcia found a similar case in Galveston, Texas. Gideon asked me, Morgan and Reid to go check it, tonight."

It wasn't a long flight, but the blond knew there was a great chance the brunette would only be back in the morning. There was no doubt sleep would take a bit longer to come that night. No comfort from home, no comfort from Emily's company. Hopefully soon she would have the comfort of a job done.

"No problem. I'll get the details with Garcia and let you know when it's all set up." The blond said, already looking for her mobile phone.

"Thanks, I'm gonna look for Hotch. Give him the heads up."

"OK, I won't take long. And Emily…" She said, getting the brunette's attention before she walked away "I didn't ask you anything"

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She had been sitting on the plane for a while before Morgan walked inside, carrying his traveling bag. It didn't take too long for her to realize Reid had bailed on them.

"Where's Reid?" Morgan asked and took a seat across the small table beside her.

"I was hoping he was with you"

"Thought you said you called him"

"I did, four times. Nothing" She explained, checking her watching, worriedly and quite frustrated "The victim's fiancé is expecting us. What are we supposed to do?" Morgan knew she was right, he checked his watch once more. If they didn't leave soon, they'd be late to talk with the victim's fiancé; and getting late hardly made for a good impression.

"We got one option. Wheels up"

The rest of the flight was all about the case at hand, who and how they would do the talking, and such details. It was never easy talking to victims' families, no matter how long it had passed. Anyone would say it is worse to be the one to give the news, but it's tough no matter the situation. There's only so much time can do. Asking them to talk about something they wish to forget it ever happened; quite the task. Reid's name remained unmentioned all through. Emily wasn't going to talk about it. Morgan knew she wouldn't.

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They walked through the hotel's tight corridor; travelling bags in hand, in search for their rooms. They were closer to the killer now; thanks to the talk with the victim's fiancé, they were sure that the unsub was a female and they found how she might be luring her victims. That could definitely be called a productive trip, the kind that got most of them on the edge.

"Sleep?" The brunette asked.

"Yeah, we got amazing…what, five hours, before having to be aboard the airplane?"

"Grandma!" She mocked. "I'm taking any chance I can get nowadays."

"Don't know why." He said, just as they found the doors to their rooms "From what I heard, ya sleep like a log"

Emily stopped opening her door and stared at him confused. He chuckled when she let out an exclamation and went back to her door muttering she would kill the blonde liaison. He threw a good night before going into the room. Mechanically, Morgan put the bag in the first corner he passed, put his wallet and mobile phone on the nightstand, his main gun in the drawer.

He stood there, quietly looking around the room, sometimes staring at the bed. Truth be told, he had no wish to sleep that night. Opposite to Emily, he wasn't a fast sleeper; he knew by the time he managed to fall asleep they'd have to be on the plane. He picked up his things, leaving only the bag, before shutting his room and knocking on the adjacent door. If he wasn't getting any sleep, no way Prentiss was.

"Just a moment!" She called out, but was ignored by Morgan who kept knocking harder and harder, aware of how much she 'loved' when people did that.

"What the hell?" Emily snarled after opening the door to the sight of the dark man, hand raised, ready for another beat.

"Saw a pool table downstairs" He gave her his trademark smirk, ignoring completely her obvious foul mood.

Morgan watched as she briefly thought it through, then walked back in; and stared, with a hint of sadness, at the mobile open, lying on the bed. She picked it up before holstering back her gun, and said, "I'm in"


	3. Chapter 3

Charity Work

Spoiler: S02E18 Jones

Pairing: Emily/JJ, slight JJ/Will

Disclaimer: I don't own the rights to Criminal Minds or any of its contents.

Author's note: Thanks B for having the patience to beta this for me (and listening to my crazy "creative" ramblings). I actually had this done a long time ago, but with my lack of free time I winded up forgetting to post. I'll try to get the other one done (and posted!) as soon as possible; still got a lot to go with this story. Thank you everyone who reviewed, I hope you're all still interested and enjoy this one.

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It wasn't long after dawn that the two agents got into the private airplane. The few beer bottles they drank through the pool table matches replaced by large cups of coffee. The quick and cold showers they took before leaving the hotel helping to hide their all-nighter. The jokes and laughter of most of their night gave place to a comfortable silence after Emily walked to the pilot's cabin and told him they were ready to go.

When they landed in New Orleans it was too early to go to the police station, even though they knew most agents would still be there. They put their bags in the back seats and walked into the car.

"Would you mind passing by the hotel first?" Morgan sounded casual, deciding to make things easier for his friend. He had noticed the stares at the mobile phone increase its' frequency and meaning as the night progressed. He had to give it to her, though; if it wasn't his job to notice such things he probably wouldn't have seen. Those looks… if they were related to who he thought they were, than he had been wrong and Garcia was right all along; it wasn't just a good chemistry with a bit of attraction. He thought about the trouble it might cause, not only to the two of them but also to the team as a unit, and got worried. That didn't last long, though.

He watched the brunette woman smiling to herself as she read something from an old rugged book; and found himself hoping the technical analyst was right. His baby sister — because was how he felt about the blonde media liaison — needed something that, even though he knew what it was, he couldn't provide. If there was someone who could it seemed to be the brunette female, all bones and bandages attached.

"Sure" It was her only answer, knowing any more might give away her relief. The black agent had hinted off enough for her to go and be obvious to the point of suggesting that herself; anything to avoid personal conversations. Morgan looked at her, let out a chuckle and repeated her word mockingly before starting up the car.

"I'm just gonna leave my bag in the room and be here in a few" Emily said as they walked through the New Orleans' hotel front doors.

"Then you'll be here alone, darling. That quick shower wasn't nearly enough to cleanse this gorgeous body of mine. I'm gonna use all the time available" He put his trademark smirk and earned a scoff and a disgusted look from the brunette.

"I need to tell Garcia to slow down on the whole flattering thing, because it's so going way over your head" That only made his smirk grow larger, a comeback ready. "Don't! I can guess what you're going to say, so I'll just split before you actually have a reason to shower."

His hurt look was so perfect that if it wasn't Derek Morgan she was talking to, she might have bought it. They parted ways as she was the first to get the keys to her room. She had no idea whether the blond was in fact there or not, but nevertheless she opened the door carefully, as to not make a sound. The room was still a bit dark, the sun rays only starting to shine in. The sound of the air conditioner was predominant in the quiet room. Using her cell phone's lights she guided herself around the room, before her eyes adjusted to the lack of visibility. She slowly walked past the sleeping blond to put her bag beside her bed. She thought about following Morgan's example, but truth be told she'd only consider herself to have had a decent shower after at least an hour in her bathtub.

She was about to lie on the bed when she heard the blonde's whimpers. It was only then she really paid attention to the sleeping woman, and saw that though she looked peaceful at first she could see the movement underneath the eyelids and her hands clutched the pillow too tightly.

"I'm sorry" The blonde's hurting apology glided through the quiet room, making it impossible for Emily to mistaken it, and ignore. She was stunned, on the edge of the bed, confused about what to do. Each moment seemed to prolong itself as she sat there watching, waiting for something to change. That was the second time she found herself in that situation, the first one haven't gone so well.

They barely knew each other then, so she understood the other woman's anger when she found herself being awakened from a nightmare by the group's new agent. There was no doubt lots of things had happened since then, and that things between then had changed, but she didn't want to risk it.

"Please, I'm so sorry" The blond pleaded once more, and this time it didn't take a second for Emily to be kneeling by her side; her hand tentatively close to the blonde's, undecided whether to hold it or not.

When, for some reason the blond let go of the pillow, the dark-haired woman took her chance, and soon it was her hand being strangled by JJ's grip. She had to admit, though: that was one strong petite woman. Even so, Emily stroked her hand with her tone in a soothing way and hoped the blond would calm a bit. Emily only relaxed when the blond did so, but the calming gesture didn't help putting away her tiredness and soon she fell asleep as well.

It was leaning on the bed with her head on the mattress near their joined hands that JJ saw the brunette, as she slowly opened her eyes. The room was considerably lighter than before, even though it hadn't been over half an hour since Emily had walked into the room. She didn't even try to resist the urge to stroke the brunette's raven hair, knowing there was little chance she'd wake up, while she thought of her nightmare.

Elle had mentioned it once that she talked in her sleep, but she didn't get much concerned about it. Her sleeping hours and Elle's hardly ever matched during their trips and bothering someone with sleep talking is hardly a single woman's worry. Only when she was woken up by the sleeping female currently near her that incommoded her. Elle had never bothered to wake her, or even do more than mention it nonchalantly that one time. Something JJ appreciated.

She felt embarrassed. She made enough effort not to show weaknesses in front of the team of profilers to screw it up like that; in front of the new agent, to make it worse. She never spoke a word about it, and gladly, neither did Emily, thought she never hid her worry. It was after that day that JJ started paying more attention to the brunette's eyes; she never mentioned but her eyes showed that she cared. They barely knew each other, but the blonde could tell her worry was sincere. From then on, as they got closer, the brunette only proved her right.

She slipped her hand out of Emily's and carefully got out of bed. The brunette barely moved. JJ walked to the brunette's bag and retrieved the sheet she knew Emily always brought to the trips, in case they were put in a not-so-stellar hotel. She covered the other woman and went to the bathroom, hoping she'd have some time for breakfast.

Morgan was still dripping all over the floor when his phone started to ring. He ran all the way to the other side of the room, being careful not to slip, knowing it was probably the unit chief.

"Morgan. Good morning to you too, Hotch." He said sarcastically over the phone "It's not even…Ok. I can get them; we'll be there in a few…" He stared at the phone as he heard the line go dead and mumbled, smiling at his bosses' antics, "Bye"

There went his hope for a calm and descent breakfast; god knows the only things his stomach had seen for a long time were beer, peanuts and coffee. He didn't take long to get dressed and go out of the room, sparing only a look at Reid's untouched bed. He was about to knock on the women's door when it was pulled open and he found himself face to face with the blonde media liaison. He looked behind her, into the room, and saw the female profiler leaning on what he knew it was the blonde's bed, as it was the one closer to the door. He looked back at JJ, a questioningly look on his face. She did her best to look oblivious, but that was Derek Morgan after all.

"Don't" She warned, but it was too late.

"Oh, the images…" He looked up with a dirty smile, his imagination on overdrive. She stared at him, waiting for him to notice she wasn't reacting, which didn't take long. "What? Not even a half-hearted slap?"

"Why would I? I have no idea what you're going on about there." She surprised herself by not even cracking a bit when saying that. Morgan narrowed his eyes mockingly and said, "You're good"

"Takes practice" She smirked proudly, "What's up, Derek?"

"Hotch called. You, sleeping beauty over there and I gotta get to the station. Reid hasn't shown up and I think Hotch needs someone to take LaMontagne out of his ass" The profiler explained.

JJ groaned at the image and the mention of the detective's name. She had to admit she liked his forwardness, but it could get inconvenient after sometime, especially when he went back to the lost puppy routine. Something she'd never admit to Emily. Then something Morgan said caught her attention, "Reid didn't show yet?"

"No, and it doesn't look like he's been in the room either" He told her, not hiding his discontent.

"Shouldn't we be worried?" She asked.

"He'll show." The man stated "Want to go eat breakfast? I can wake up Prentiss if you want"

Morgan received a skeptic look from the blonde, "I want to see you try. I bet 10 bucks you'll give up as soon as you realize the only response you'll get is a nice and grumpy 'Fuck off'"

"Familiar with the bed habits already?" He couldn't stop the teasing remark from coming out and got a light slap from the blonde.

"Yeah, you wish" She joked.

"Gotta say, I wouldn't mind" He admitted, watching closely for the blonde's reaction. She didn't take long to push him away, lacking the lightness from a few moments before.

"You should go have breakfast or we'll be late" She said hastily.

"I think I hit a nerve there" He's smirk turned into a full blown laughter when the media liaison glared at him. He walked backwards to the elevator, hands up in mock surrender. "Going, going"


End file.
